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Defense Ministry defends islet road expansion project

ROC Central News Agency

2007-08-31 21:18:20

    Taipei, Aug. 31 (CNA) The Ministry of National Defense (MND) has defended a construction project to expand the main road on Taiwan-held Taiping Island in the Nansha, or Spratly, islands in the South China Sea, saying that the road is needed for sustainable development and as an emergency runway.

    The ministry made the remarks in a press release issued Friday after an evening newspaper said the day before that former Defense Minister Lee Jye secretly allocated funds for the project to construct an airport during his tenure. The construction was later suspended as the budget was killed by the Legislative Yuan.

    Recently, the MND began to send troops to the Nansha islands for a planned resumption of the project slated to kick off Sept. 25, so that the construction can be completed before President Chen Shui-bian travels to the outlying islet to inaugurate the airport in December, the report claimed.

    However, the ministry said in the press release that it has obtained the needed budget for the road expansion project by law, has won the approval of the Executive Yuan and has notified the Legislative Yuan of the project.

    The islet's main road will be expanded to 1,150 meters in length and 30 meters in width, the press release said, adding that the expanded road will be used by people and vehicle at normal times, and by aircraft for emergency landings and takeoffs during humanitarian relief missions.

    Meanwhile, the MND said it has taken measures to protect the environment while planning the project, although the Environmental Protection Administration required no environmental impact assessment for the project.

    Under the measures, the MND said it will avoid areas of flourishing trees and will transplant trees prior to the construction. The construction area will be located on either side of the main road where there are fewer trees, the ministry said, adding that the construction area will only account for 10 percent of the islet's total land area.

    In addition, the MND said the construction troops will have strict orders not to damage primitive trees or sandy areas frequented by sea turtles.

    It added that it will use gravel transported from Taiwan proper rather than from the islet itself and that it will transport discarded goods to Taiwan proper instead of leaving them on the islet, according to the press release.

(By T.C. Jiang)

ENDITEM/J